Banjo mute



June 3, 1930. Q FORSYTHE 1,761,294

BANJO MUTE Filed Dec. 8, 1927 cl3 B Patented June 3, 1930 'UNITED STATES CALVIN LEE FORSYTHE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONEHALF TO THOMASr R. DORCEY, OF CI-ICAGO, ILLINOXS BANJO MUTE Application led December 8, 1927.

My invention relates to improvements in mutes for banjos and has for one object to provide a combined tail piece and mute for other stringed instruments wherein the mute may be permanently attached to the instru` ment in place so that the operator may move it into and out of operative position. One of the objects of the invention is to provide a mute which may be assembled with the banjo as an operative part thereof in such position with respect to the hand of the operator that he may be able to move it back and forth into and out of working position without interfering with the tempc of the music. Other objects will appear from time to time throughout the speciiicaticn and claims.

My invention is illustrated more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure l is a plan view;

Figure 2 is a side elevation with parts broken away on an enlarged scale;

Figure 3 is a bottom view of the tail piece with the strings omitted;

Figure 4 is a section along the line l-ll of Figure 3 with the strings omited;

Like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the several figures.

A is the usual banjo head or drum having a parchment drum surface A1 held tight on the head. A neck A'2 projecting from the head terminates in a head A3, having keys A13 therein and a bridge A14. Spaced along the head are the usual frets A,

B is the tail piece mounted on the side of the head opposed to the neck A2. rlhis tail piece comprising a metallic plate extends inwardly across the drum. On the outer end of this tail piece are a series of horns B1. In line with these horns are slots B2 terminating toward the forward end thereof in holes B3 therethrough. On the under side of the tail piece are slots Bt extending forwardly from the holes. B5 are strings having a knot B6 engaging the horn B1. These strings lie in the slots B2 pass downwardly through the apertures B3 thence outwardly through the slots B4E across the bridge B6 and thence across the drum along the neck to the plate A3 where Serial No. 233,474.

each string is wound about one of the keys I x13 so that it can be tightened in the usual manner.

C is a mute comprising a round bar of metal or other suitable, preferably hard, material. This loar is supported at either end by a spring arm C1 which extends back toward the tail piece. The spring arm yis bent to form a loop C2 and then inwardly tolight on top of the tail piece as at C2 thence bent outwardly and extends beneath the tail piece where the two arms are joined in a central forwardly projecting nger Ct which rides in a slot C5 on the underside of the tail piece, the purpose of this slot being to guide the arm to hold the spring arms together in lino and prevent twisting of the mute on the tail piece and insure that it will be held in such posit-ion that it can he moved forwardly and .backwardly along the tail piece. C, C7 are stops on the tail piece limiting the forward or backward movement as the case may be of the mute. The relation between these stops, the tail piece and the mute are such that when the mute is at the forward extension it rests upon the strings at the point where they engage the bridge. The tension of the spring arm is such that the mute is held snugly against the bridge with suhcient force to prevent dancing or vibration of the mute away from the strings as result of play. When in the inoperative position the mute rests on the tail piece being preferably out of contact with the strings though even if the mute is in contact with thev strings at any point between the bridge and the tail piece no'particular damage is done because the part of the strings which vibrate and make music is only that part between the bridge and the member A3. v

Since the mute is guided in its movement along the tail piece and may move into or out of the operative position and since it is permanently mounted as part of the instrument7 it will be obvious that the player with a touch of the inger may slide the mute into or out of operative position, thereby making use of the mute or disconnecting its use normally without changing the time of music or the stroke.

I claim:

1. In a stringed musical instrument, a bridge, a tail piece, there being a groove on the underside of the tail piece, a mute adapted 5 when in one position to bear on the bridge comprising a transverse bar, spring arms eX- tending rearwardly therefrom from the tail piece, the arms embracing the tail piece, a member associated with said arms and slidable in the groove on the underside of the tail piece.

2. In a stringed musical instrument, a bridge, a tail piece, there being a groove on the underside thereof, a mute comprising a transverse bar, spring arms extending rearwardly from the tail piece, the arms embracing the tail piece, a member associated with said arms and slidable in the groove'on the underside of the tail piece, stops on the tail '2o piece adapted to limit the movement of the mute between two extremes one with the mute in engagement with the strings on the bridge, the other with the mute in engagement with the tail piece itself.

3. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a flat plate, a plurality of horns on the rear end, the upper surface thereof being slotted in line with the horns, there being perforations through the plate at the forward ends of the slots and slots on the underside of the plate extending from the perforations forwardly to the end of the plate, generally parallel with the vslots on the upper side thereof, a channel on the underside of the tail piece, a carriage engaging the tail piece,

the bottom thereof having a member slidable in the channel and a mute carried by the carriage.

4. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments having a bridge comprising a flat plate,

a plurality of horns on the rear end, the upper surface thereof being slotted in line with the horns, there being perforations through the plate at the forward ends of the slots and slots on the underside of the plate extending from the perforations forwardly to the end of the plate, generally parallel with the slots on the upper side thereof, a channel on the underside of the tail piece, a carriage engaging the tail piece, the bottom thereof having a member slidable in the channel and a mute carried by the carriage, spring arms interposed between the carriage and the mute and tending yieldingly to press the mute downward on the bridge with which the mute when in one position cooperates.

Signed at Chicago, county of Cook and State of Illinois.

CALVIN LEE FORSYTHE. 

